


The Curious Case of the Orange Blossom

by AbedIsBatmanNow0309



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: AU, Murder Mystery, The Casebook of Rey Jacobi, a little Agatha Christie, a little Arthur Conan Doyle, come for the murder, stay for the flirting thinly disguised as hatred
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-24
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-11-29 04:29:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18218219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AbedIsBatmanNow0309/pseuds/AbedIsBatmanNow0309
Summary: 1928. London, England. Rey Jacobi and Finn Dormer have started a (so far) highly successful detective agency. when a murder is committed on a country estate, they're on the case, and everyone is a suspect.





	1. The Stage is Set

**Author's Note:**

> So, here we go! I'm just out here trying to make Violetwilson proud.  
> I take full responsibility for all errors, whether spelling, grammatical, slang, or anachronistic.

Rey Jacobi let out a deep sigh as she sat up in her chair and gripped the edge of her desk. She’d just caught herself staring wistfully out the window for the third time in an hour. She had wrapped the case of the Creeper earlier in the week (a colourful nickname the papers had come up with for what turned out to be a bored little rich girl with a tendency towards kleptomania) and, much to Rey’s chagrin, nothing new had arisen since. With no work and Finn out of town with Poe for the weekend, she was terribly bored. What she needed was a distraction. She rose from her seat, resolving to take a walk. Though it would likely rain later, it was clear now: a bright, crisp afternoon, so characteristic of the early spring. Yes, she thought, as she turned the knob of her flat’s front door, a lovely stroll through the Gardens would do her good. The air would clear her head and she could people watch for amusement. As she stepped out onto the landing, she heard the door on the first floor open and the voice of Rey’s landlady drifted up.

“Rey, are you going out, dearie?”

“Just for a walk, Maz. Do you need anything?”

“Oh no, honey. But you better wrap up warm! That wind off the river is chilling.”

Rey turned back and grabbed her coat from the hook by the door.

“I will,” she called down, slipping the trench over her shoulders and shutting her door behind her. Maz was a kindly woman of an indeterminate age, who insisted on looking out for Rey. Other people might characterize Maz as “nosey,” but Rey knew it wasn’t gossip Maz was after, but information. She may have seemed like a bored old woman, but she had a keen eye and sharp wit, and her knowledge of comings and goings in the neighborhood and been invaluable to Rey on more than one occasion.

“Any new cases come in?” Maz asked, knowing full well the answer.

Rey locked the door and started down the steps. “Not yet.”

“Oh well, something’s bound to pop up soon,” Maz said with a twinkle as Rey rounded the corner.

Rey gave her a wry smile as she took the last few steps in a leap of pent-up energy. “I hope so.”

“Heard from Finn?”

“No, but I’m sure that just means he and Poe are having a glorious time in the country.”

“Oh I don’t doubt that,” Maz chuckled. “Well, I do hope the rain holds off until you get back, dearie,” and with a little wave Maz shut her door, though Rey could’ve sworn she caught Maz winking. As always, Rey thought as she headed out the front door with a shake of her head, that woman knows more than she is telling.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————

Rey spent a comfortable couple of hours meandering along the river and through the Gardens, occasionally pausing to share a bit of the scone she had picked up at her favourite bakery with the ducks, careful to keep the extra scone for Maz wrapped up snugly in her coat pocket. At one point, she popped into the local division, only to be promptly dismissed by the desk sergeant before she’d even opened her mouth. “No! We don’t need any help from you, missy! We can take care of our own business, thank you!” Still, the city was lovely company, even with the inevitable rain clouds rolling in, as she made her way home. She did miss Finn a bit. He loved feeding the ducks. But she couldn’t begrudge him a weekend away playing lords of the manor at Poe’s undoubtedly splendid country home. It was marvelous to think of how far she and Finn had come from their humble beginnings. Despite growing up on the streets on the opposite bank of the Thames, Finn seemed to have acclimated to their suddenly elevated social status effortlessly, while she sometimes still felt as if she didn’t quite belong in this posh neighbourhood. Finn had taken the flat on the top floor, though since he'd met Poe, he spent less and less time there. And she was sure Maz was giving them a break on the rent, although, with the sum she had been offered to keep quiet about the identity of the Creeper, she could have paid top price in full for the rest of the year and installed a telephone, which Finn was constantly pestering her to do.

“We could get so many more clients!” he’d insist. “They’re not just for the upper class anymore. We’re trying to run a modern detective agency here and you won’t even spring for a telephone!”

But she stood firm. Telephones may have been going mainstream, but they were still expensive and unreliable. And she’d gotten on fine so far without one.

The first raindrops plopped onto the crown of her head as she climbed the three steps to the front door. London was still London, no matter what neighbourhood she lived in. And as soon as she got inside, Maz was waiting for her. Ears like a bat, that woman.

“Just in time! You didn’t take a brolly with you.”

“Didn’t need it, Maz. Got you a scone. Sultanas, your favourite.” Rey reached into her pocket and procured the delicately covered treat.

“Bless you, dearie. Post came while you were out.” They traded handfuls. “I think there’s a telegram.”

Rey looked down to find there was indeed a telegram tucked neatly on top. Certain Maz already knew the contents, Rey read it aloud.

“Rey.

Come at once. If inconvenient, come anyway. Poe & I fine. Murder. Need you.

Finn.”

She looked back up at Maz, who had that twinkle in her eye again.

“You’d better go upstairs and pack. You’ve got a train to catch.”


	2. The Curtain Rises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> train journey ✅

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I take full responsibility for all errors, whether spelling, grammatical, slang, or anachronistic.  
> I'm just out here trying to make Violetwilson proud.

Rey bounded up to the second floor, unlocked her door, and tossed the rest of the forgotten post onto the dining table in a flurry of movement, hurrying down the hall to her bedroom without removing her coat. Her mind was going a mile a minute as she hopped up onto tiptoes to grasp at her suitcase stored atop the wardrobe and fling it open on the bedspread. As she opened the wardrobe to survey her options, she made herself pause. Now, what would she need? She knew Poe came from an old family and she was going to his country estate. Her hand hovered over the one fancy dress she’d bought after her first lucrative case, but hesitated. She was going to work, after all, not hob-nob with Poe’s high society friends. Then again, perhaps she would need to go incognito at some point. And an expensive dress shouldn’t spend its life just hanging in the corner of her closet. Mind made-up, she snatched it from the hanger, along with its matching t-strap heels, a couple of sensible suits, her boots (who knew what manner of hedgerows she’d be tramping through), and a hat. Lastly she raced into the office, grabbed a handful of the precious business cards she’d had printed up just two weeks ago, placed them on top of her haphazard pile of clothes, and snapped her suitcase shut. As she secured her hat and collected her case, a sudden, but well-known panic gripped her. Rey took a moment to survey her room and the flat beyond, reminding herself that she had a home here and that her leaving was temporary. After a few slow, steady breaths, she checked her watch and a quiet yelp escaped her lips. She still had to walk to Victoria Station and if she didn’t get a move on, she’d miss the last train! Out the door she went. Swiftly snapping it shut behind her and turning to lock it, Maz’s voice reached her.

“Young Finn will be meeting you at the Gravesend station.” Rey peered over the rail, realizing that, as usual, Maz was two steps ahead of her. “I rang the boys as soon as the wire came in, of course. Just because you won’t get a telephone doesn’t mean the rest of us are so stubborn,” Maz said with that nearly ever-present twinkle. “Apparently Poe has a new motor car he’s been dying to show off.”

Rey quickly rounded the corner of the stairs, one hand clutching her case and the other firmly planted on the crown of her hat. “Maz, you’re brilliant, thanks.”

Maz just chuckled and opened the front door for her. “Hurry along now, honey. Murder waits for no one!”

“Right you are, Maz!” Rey called back as she rushed through and flounced down the outer steps to the street. She took one last look behind her as she turned westward towards the station. Home, she thought, as Maz laughed and waved at her from the doorway. And suddenly she was laughing as well as she broke into a run. She had a home and she’d be back.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————

After selecting an empty compartment about half way back and depositing her suitcase in the overhead rack (there was no one about to see her standing on the seat so she could reach), Rey dropped into her seat and allowed herself a sigh of relief. The train wasn’t anywhere near full leaving London on a Saturday evening, which was why this was the last one of the day heading southeast through Gravesend. Gravesend, she thought, was now an incredibly fitting name for her destination, though she’d never considered it in that light before. Poe (and lately Finn) had mostly just talked about “the Hall” or, when he wanted to dazzle Finn with stories of the Great War, Windmill Hill. Rey rested her head against the window as the train pulled out of the station, going over everything she knew so far, which was almost nothing, and trying to remember any details from Poe’s stories about Gravesend. She’d never paid too much attention to them, since she suspected they were exaggerated and she knew they were being told for Finn’s benefit anyhow, but not she wished she’d been listening more. It would be useful to have an idea what she was walking into and whom she was likely to encounter. Unfortunately, nothing much came to mind and as the train rocked and rattled eastward, Rey drifted off. She was awoken by a sharp rapping at the entry to her compartment. The porter eyed her sheepishly.

“We’ve arrived, Miss. You are getting off here in Gravesend, yes? I gather there’s a young man on the platform who’s very insistent you are.”

“Oh my, yes. So sorry about that.” She leapt up and reached into her pocket, while looking up. “Uh, I don’t suppose you could reach my bag?”

“Of course. Miss.” With ease, he stretched up and handed it down to her.

She slipped a coin into his hand with a murmured “many thanks” and briskly disembarked to find Finn frantically pacing.

“There you are!” He pounced on her, enveloping her in a hug both warm and slightly crushing, patented Finn-style. “When you didn’t get off, I got worried and I wouldn’t let them leave until they’d found you!” Pulling back, he began attempting to adjust her hat, which between the hug and the train ride, was hopelessly askew. “Rey! Wake up,” he admonished with a grin. “Murder and mayhem afoot!”

“Right, yes, sorry.”

Finn took her suitcase and started walking back through the station. “Come on! Poe’s waiting out front. He’s driving us back to the Hall in his new car and boy, is she a beauty, Rey. We’ll get you all up to speed on the way.”

“And you’re both completely well?”

“Oh yes, Peanut. No need to worry about us. Fit as fiddles. We’ve just had what Poe calls ‘a spot of bother’ down at the house,” Finn intoned as they approached the door. He held it open for he and leaning down to her as she passed, stage whispered, “That’s posh for ‘someone got themselves murdered at one of his parties.’”

It was darkening quickly as the sun set behind them, but Rey instantly spotted Poe casually leaning against the door of a motorcar that had clearly been gleaming before it had made the journey here.

“Rey, old girl! So glad you could make it,” Poe called out as he saw them emerge from the station. “I’m afraid this time I need your services for something a little more solemn than the case of my missing medals.” As she approached, he held out a hand and gave hers a firm shake. Then he took a step back and gestured in a sort of voila motion towards the vehicle. “And what do you think of this old girl?”

Rey took in the large wheels and long engine bay. “She certainly looks like quite the machine, Poe.”

“Four and a half litres,” he replied proudly.

Finn stuck his head between them and when they both turned towards him, he lifted Rey’s case up under his chin. “Uh, yeah, hi. Can we admire it from the inside so I can put this down?”

Poe laughed at that and clapped Finn on the shoulder.

“It’s not that heavy,” Rey retorted, as Poe opened the passenger door her and the back for Finn. When Poe walked around to the driver’s side, she twisted around and petulantly stuck her tongue out at Finn, but with a smile in her eyes.

Settling her case on the seat next to him, he reached out and patted her hand. “I missed you too,” he said softly and Rey’s smile reached her lips.

Once Poe was settled in behind the wheel, he glanced over at her. “Right. Ready?”

She gave him a nod and as the engine roared to life, she reached into her pocket and took out her notebook, with a fountain pen tucked into its pages. The ride wasn’t exactly smooth at the speed Poe was taking the corners, but she did her best to steady her hands enough to take notes as she looked at the boys and said, “Now, start at the beginning and tell me everything.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun facts: Gravesend is a real town (it was bombed during the war, you know) and there was apparently a "stabbing incident" there in 1928. however, there was also the "worst flooding for fifty years," which we will conveniently be ignoring.  
> less fun facts: I also tried to purposely arrange the timeline so that Finn was too young to serve in WWI and while technically this is the case, the BBC reckons some 250k underage boys signed up anyway. for our purposes, Finn will not be one of those, and therefore not buried under a white cross somewhere in France.  
> has someone written The Great Gatsby with Poe as Gatsby and Finn as Nick? because they should.  
> 

**Author's Note:**

> Be gentle. xo


End file.
